CappuccinoandArtJournal

Mostly postal but art and other things of interest too.

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Monday, June 6, 2011

Help Me If You Can

OK. I admit I need some help -- some ideas of what what to do with all this
wonderful mail. The wire basket is overflowing and I can't figure out how to display all the
terrific mail art I've received.
Help me if you can!
(Thanks to The Beatles for that line)
Please
leave me some suggestions in the comments. I know all your creative mail lovers out there
will have some good ideas for me.

WORKING ON
I am working on a multitude of projects, including my Chinatown artist book
with my photos, fire cracker wrappers, joss papers and all kinds of random things I've
picked up in Chinatown.....

LOOKING AT
I like to look at the various Chinese tea boxes and tins for peanuts and fire crackers
(can you see those bees?).
All inspiring.

LISTENING TO
Rupa and the April Fishes
Shown here at the local farmers market two blocks from my house.
They are a San Francisco band
but the music is world music sung in French, Spanish and English.
They are terrific!

Still listening....
More of Rupa. Check out the YouTube video up top to hear the band.

15 comments:

sorry, my first comment didn't make it through. i was thinking you could do a clothesline type display if you have room on your walls? i just get string, thumbtacks and then once the line is up i clip papers/envelopes/etc onto the line.

Mmh yes what to do with all that pretty mail... I don't have that big of a collection yet ;) but I am thinking about making something on a wall in my living room so I can stick them on there and making a big collage of it or something

I see I've missed so many posts...can't wait to catch up soon.I know it would be difficult with so many shapes & sizes of the letters, but I keep seeing shelves about 7" from the ceiling, circling your studio that would eventually be just a giant shelf filled with letters. I guess sort of like a "live" wallpaper border. WIll get back into the swing of things & be sending out some mail soon. ;)

In my mind, the best ongoing display would be laying them out (collage art like), photographing them and printing that photo on 8 1/2 x 11 that is then added to a Circa Notebook (see Levenger). Then the pages can be easily reordered as your vision changes. Circa has plastic pockets too so you could keep some of your favorite examples in actual format. Circa buttons and covers come in all kinds of cool colors and designs so you could find them easily on the shelf when you are adding to them. No matter what you decide, keep it fun!

Miss P. -- this is a dilemma I'm constantly faced with! :-) I organize my mail a few different ways: those Itoya photo albums for postcards and such, and binders with plastic sleeves (ala Office Depot) for larger/multiple pieces by the same artist. Some folks have their own binders, if they're prolific senders. I also have plastic shoe buckets (from Container Store) that I keep odd sized mail art in -- I mean, where else am I going to put that can of soup that someone mailed me? :-)Thanks for posting that incredible photo of all of your incoming mail! Folks ask me all the time about organization/mail art storage, and I've been meaning to write up a little something...

A mail wall is the solution, but then you'd see only one side. This is what I do because I don't have nearly that much: I'm stringing mine on clear fishing line and hanging it from the ceiling. I'm starting with the first strings close to the wall, then will work my way around my studio, and out. I've sketched out a design to use some as curtains first, because I never cover my windows.

I'm organized yet scattered with my received mail.I organize my postcards from swap-bot swaps and Postcrossing into photo-boxes divided by category of card and/or country.Letters and anything flat from my pen-pals goes in a big binder. I have one for each year (or until it gets full). I use dividers for each separate person and I also have those sleeves for postcards that have the three hole sin them to fit into binders.I also have my favorite postcards hung up on clothespins with ribbon on my wall.I love this post!

I have no problem with my postcards, I've an elaborate organization system, and I rotate only 20 or so cards at a time into a small display at work. I'm careful about NOT having more than 20 postcards out at a time ... that way lies madness.

My other mail, however, has not been organized. I have it in big shopping bags, waiting for inspiration. The Circa Notebook idea that CJ Ink suggested ... I've wanted an excuse to use that system. I think I have it now. Expensive solution, but man, would it look gorgeous! Thank you CJ Ink!

The other thing I would like to do is have a large low table, and put a glass top on it so I could slip favorite mail under the glass and leave it on display. Not so much the full letters, but the envelopes and perhaps the letters peeking out from behind the envelopes to show off the interesting stationery.

I am also going to start digitalizing all my mail. I now have access to a scanner that does duplex scanning, in color, and I'm going to store it on an external hard drive. Not really sure why I need to do this, but I've wanted to do it for years. I want to be able to say to myself something like, "Didn't someone mention Vienna Teng in a letter a while back?" and be able to search a database to find out who it was.

Wow--what interesting comments. I am still thinking....one thought I had was to set up my under-used sewing machine and make a giant mail art quilt to hang on the wall. I like that shelf idea, Stephanie. And CJ and PostMuse like the Circa idea...I hadn't heard of Circa notebooks but in looking them up, they seem awfully expensive...I think I want to do something more "organic"....but I love all the ideas and thanks so much. Hoping to hear some more of your cyber-thoughts....

Such good ideas. I, however, keep mine in those boxes sold at craft supply stores that are the size of shoe boxes but pretty. I stack them in my studio under a shelf. I only have one wall space available in my studio as my real wall to display pieces. I'm going to change up the current display this weekend. I can do between 14 & 18 nicely. Such a problem, too much mail! Hah, the BEST problem to have, right?

oh wow...I too am stunned by all that amazing and awesome mail. I think I really need to start making some mail art friends so I can have mail like that... At that rate you will need to find a space and have a pop-up mail art gallery. (empty retail space, maybe?) and have local businesses sponsor by catering/supplying refreshments. Oh, maybe you could see if your local library has a display case where you could display your mail art collection and maybe get others interested in it. I am art liaison for my dd's elementary school PTA and would love to borrow a boxful of it to display in our school lobby for a couple of months...I'm serious. If you are interested, please contact me. :) I'll even pay for postage.

Wow, Clara -- what terrific ideas! I love the pop-up mail art gallery idea. Here is SF, there is an arts program to put art in empty storefronts and it never even occurred to me to do that. I am pretty attached to my mail art collection but maybe we can work something out - or I can collect mail art from some of the Bay Area mail artists. Or maybe I can post a request in my blog for people to send the school mail art.....